I’ve thought about this sort of thing while I was smoking, and since I’ve stopped (FIVE YEARS ago this month). Being of a libertarian persuasion, I very much support the smoker’s right to smoke, because they have CHOSEN to do so (in spite of all the evidence pointing to its lethal effects). Prior to any smoking ban in pubs, I would say that non-smokers chose to go to these venues, knowing that they would be smoky. As the linked news article says, people should have the “right to the peaceful enjoyment of possessions.”
However. When one’s enjoyment of their possessions directly affects and negatively impacts others’ own health and/or enjoyment, this gets quite sticky, surely? Or does an individual’s rights supercede all other individuals’ rights? That clearly makes no sense whatsoever, so we know that can’t be correct.
Does a government act correctly in enacting a smoking ban in enclosed public places? If they were avowed libertarians (assuming secondhand smoke does NOT intrude on other people’s ‘liberty to breathe smoke-free air’), the answer would be an unequivocal no. But Labour is supposed to be socialist, and socialism is all about the top-down.
As it stands, the smoking ban in Scotland usually means we have to get by all the smokers huddled around the entrances of pubs and clubs, which is quite unpleasant. And that the usually less-than-stellar standards of plumbing and personal hygiene after some have had a few drinks mean the toilets emanate a stench far beyond its borders (that were once disguised under the smoke). One of the criticisms of the ban is that local councils have not granted planning permission (yet another thing one can complain about) quickly enough for affected businesses to build new outdoor facilities for smokers (I read this somewhere but can’t remember the source).
I think, in the end, what should happen (from my libertarian perspective) is that smokers should have the right to smoke wherever they want, provided they do not, as a result, compel others to inhale secondhand smoke. A government, whether national or local, should not stand in the way of businesses providing smoker-friendly and smoke-free facilities for all their customers.
Comments
29 June 2007
12:52
Troy
Trust me. An all out smoking ban is an amazing thing. In Ontario you can’t smoke anywhere in buildings used by the public (or workplaces). That means I can go to a bar, restaurant, shopping mall, etc. and not have to worry about smelling like smoke, oh and the chance that I may be genetically more likely to get lung cancer.
I feel for the smokers, but I also believe that the government has a responsibility to the wellbeing of the public. Smokers will smoke - it’s not something the government can stop them from doing (aside from making cigarettes illegal which would cause bigger problems), the least they can do is protect us non-smokers from breathing in toxic clouds when we are trying to enjoy a nice evening out.
29 June 2007
13:00
Andrea
Heh. And as I’ve mentioned before, we live with a smoker, so we smell of smoke when we stay home, not when we go out. HAHA!
29 June 2007
14:41
andrea
Here’s a story I just shared on Google Reader - Just a bit of smoke dangerous, study says
29 June 2007
15:27
Troy
Living with smokers is another issue all together. Though I’ve known a lot of people who because of the smoking ban have become more self-conscious about smoking in a house when non-smokers are present. A lot of people will actually go outside (or at the very least ask before lighting up). So at the very least the Ontario smoking ban have made smokers more understanding toward the non-smoker.
Plus we are use to being told what we can do and where we can do it. Alcohol can only be consumed in licensed establishments or at home - never in public - I imagine Singapore is pretty strict in that regards as well.
30 June 2007
03:58
Tutu
I lived with my family of smokers and when I finally moved into my own place, previously occupied by non-smokers… I suddenly realised how strong the odour was in our house!
Still I never tool up the habit…
30 June 2007
16:12
Terry
Good job on staying off the cigs. Wow, have I really been reading over 5 years?
I had a similar experience to Tutu. Both my parents smoked 2 or 3 packs a day until I was about 12. My friends commented on how bad my mom’s car stank but they never refused rides over it. Doctors found a couple of lumps in my dad’s lung when he was about 50 and he quit the next day. My mom kept it up until about 10 years ago.
5 July 2007
06:56
Rebekka
“Prior to any smoking ban in pubs, I would say that non-smokers chose to go to these venues, knowing that they would be smoky.”
But what if a really good band is playing at a pub where you’re allowed to smoke? As a fan of the band and a non-smoker, my only choice then if I want to see the band is to subject myself to second-hand smoke. I have a right to clean air AND entertainment!
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